Gravestones in the Singaporean Jungle
Travel memoir by Gregory E. Larson
Truth be told, some of my best adventures are in
out-of-the-way places where few people go. These are not tourist destinations,
but are unusual lesser-known spots that sometimes are a bit quirky. A prime
example of this is Bukit-Brown, an abandoned Chinese cemetery in the jungle on
the Singapore island/city/state. The more information that surfaced, the more
interesting and bizarre the destination seemed.
Singapore is an island at the tip of the Malaysian
peninsula. It is fast becoming the new “Hong Kong.” There are tourist
attractions (most of which I have visited) but it is mainly a business and
shipping center. Six million people inhabit Singapore which has about 284
square miles. Property is at a premium, but there are still some undeveloped
areas. My architectural description of Singapore is “urban nodes of tall
buildings popping up in the jungle with interconnecting boulevards and
highways.”
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| Urban nodes of tall buildings and interconnecting boulevards |
Prior to my visit there earlier this year, my daughter
sent me some links to Bukit-Brown’s history. The cemetery was opened in 1922,
and was filled with gravesites by World War II. Some additional burials were
made available after the Japanese occupation, but the burials stopped by 1950.
The cemetery closed in 1973. I was aghast when I read that the government is
planning for development on the Bukit-Brown site. In fact, over 5,000
gravesites had already been eliminated to allow for a highway expansion. The
bodies were exhumed and cremated. Attempts were made to connect with families
so the ashes could be given to the descendants. Still, about 170 acres of land
exists with close to 100,000 graves that have remained undisturbed. That will
begin to change in 2030 when the process starts to remove all of the remaining
graves and headstones.
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| One of the reservoirs on the island of Singapore |
On a recent day-hike in Singapore, I passed a
reservoir (one of many) that is used for the island’s water supply. I walked
through some urban nodes and past a golf course. When I got to the cemetery
there was a sign that said it was closed, although there was no gate or fence
to keep me out, and there was a road to walk on. The sign also said “Enter at
your own risk.” That caused me to pause.
I decided to continue past the cemetery and discuss the issue of entering later
with my daughter and son-in-law. I knew they would know the dangers.
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| Ominous sign along the entry to Bukit-Brown Cemetery |
My daughter said that she
and her husband would go there with me on a Saturday morning hike, when they
were not working. It worked out for the best, because they knew a lot of
history and were able to share it with me. As we walked past the entry sign,
the cemetery exuded an eerie feeling with burning incense and the high humidity
creating a haze among the jungle shadows.
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| The burning incense and the humidity gave the cemetery an eerie feeling |
My daughter said that historians are etching the gravestones and taking pictures of them, because the stones are rich in information. My son-in-law shared with me that a symbol on the corner of the gravestone represents the Chinese village from which the person’s family came from. With the village symbol and research, a family can go back over 1,000 years of family records.
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| Examples of the gravestones with the symbolic horseshoe-shaped mountainside |
He also told me that the horseshoe-shaped area behind
the gravestone is a symbol of a mountainside, as the Chinese custom is to have
the burials on a mountainside. There are significant symbols of nature and
guardians, as well as a separate headstone to the right of the main headstone
that represents an offering to the “earth god.”
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| Gravestone with a guardian |
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| Largest gravestone that we saw in Bukit-Brown |
Although the last burials occurred many decades ago,
we saw many families there visiting graves and burning incense. A history
walking tour was happening as well. We also saw monkeys fighting over scraps of
food offerings left by families at the graves. Some graves were well kept with
the grass and weeds cut regularly. Other areas were succumbing to the jungle
overgrowth which occurs at a rapid rate. Additional tombstones had tented areas
or tarps so that families could come to visit the grave and stay out of the sun
or rain.
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| Bukit-Brown Cemetery covers roughly 170 acres |
As we walked for a couple of hours, I sensed that a lot of history of the island and some of its Chinese heritage was going to disappear when the cemetery is removed. I had to remind myself that different nations require different customs. It is hard for me to imagine cemeteries in the U.S. being demolished. I know of many urban areas that have wrought-iron fences around small cemeteries in parking lots or busy corners of the city.
I wondered what the area will look like in a hundred years from now. Progress marches on, and generation after generation learn to deal with the issues of their time. And, truth be told, those tall buidlings in the jungle will return to dust in some distant era.
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| The Singaporean Jungle will probably outlive the civilized era |
